Album Review: Nectarine by Funeral Advantage

Beautiful synth-pop infused with electronic and rock melodies creates an edgy, eerily calming mood that is carefully and cleverly curated throughout the record.

Nectarine, Funeral Advantage’s latest release, should be the soundtrack to a John Hughes film—adventurous, energetic, and edgy. The beautiful synth-pop infused with electronic and rock melodies create an edgy, eerily calming mood that is carefully and cleverly curated throughout the record. Funeral Advantage is the stage name of Boston-based musician, Tyler Kershaw. New wave beats and ethereal vocal harmonies fuse in this dark yet playful album. Electric and experimental, with haunting themes of complicated and unrequited romance, Nectarine is filled with refreshing twists and turns that will keep it spinning in the mind long after the record player has been shut off.

On first listen, Nectarine channels New Order, and mixes them with the dark aesthetics and harmonies of bands like Working For A Nuclear Free City. This is especially noticeable in the catchy, toe-tapping track “Black House,” the second song on the record. The lyrics address the type of catastrophic love that we know is bad for us, but it still leaves us breathless after it is over. The beat recalls New Order’s “Blue Monday,” until Funeral Advantage delves into something more nefarious and heartbreaking. The song recounts a whirlwind love that leaves both people involved devastated:

“Now I’m fucked / Because you were moving through a fantasy and moving without me and / I’m fucked / And I wish you would break me / I wish love had taken me.”

This reveals a progression of the narrator’s frustration and fear with relationships, something that all listeners can relate to. The tormented, bitter lyrics juxtapose with the cosmic instrumental sound of the track. Soothing vocals echo during the chorus, creating a hauntingly melancholic aura to the track. The fifth song on the album, “Bad Magnet,” also showcases Kershaw’s talent in musical experimentation. Kershaw uses the echo effect on his voice while backing the track up with a garage rock song that blends seamlessly with the previous cosmic electronic sound. This blending sets the mood for the record, and adds a certain underlying darkness to the romantic nature of the LP. Other songs on the record, like “Take Me Down,” and “It Never Gets Any Better, You Just Get Used To It,” prove Funeral Advantage to be a powerhouse in instrumentals.

Nectarine entices with its experimental sounds and wistful vocals. The dark imagery of wayward romance punctuated by angst and heartache wraps you around its finger, pulling you deeper and deeper into the record—and you can’t shut it off once you start. Nectarine hones in on Funeral Advantage’s knack for songwriting as well as instrumental experimentation and progression, and proves that the young musician’s future is nothing but bright.